Jan 26, 2012 “Worry is an old man with bended head carrying a load of feathers which he thinks are lead.”Anonymous

“Pass up the following:

Signed syllabusDecorated writing folder

10 SAT word maps

The History of Ancient Greek Drama

The Greek TheaterGreek Actors

The MaskGreek Religion

5 Learning StationsEach learning station will inform you

of the following components of Greek Drama:

The History of Greek Drama The Greek Theater

Greek Actors The Mask

Greek Religion Video Segment

LEARNING STATION INSTRUCTIONS

For each station, you must do the following:

Read the instructions on the folder!Read the handout for that particular station to answer the questions.After the ten minutes is up, move to the next learning station in a clockwise system.DO NOT WRITE ON THE HANDOUTS THAT ARE DESIGNATED FOR THAT LEARNING STATION!!!

Learning Station Topics LEARNING STATION 1: Origin of

Greek Drama and Actors LEARNING STATION 2: Greek Masks

and Greek Theater LEARNING STATION 3: Greek

Religion LEARNING STATION 4: “Oedipus”

Video Segment LEARNING STATION 5: Pre-reading

Questions & Anticipation Guide

The Origins of Greek Drama1.Where can the origins of drama be found?

Athens, Greece

2. What is a “Dionysia” and why is this a significant event?

It was an annual festival of dances and songs performed in honor of the god Dionysus (the god of wine and procreation).

3. What did the song-like storytelling evolve into?An enactment of Dionysian legends in Greek history.

4. How were the first plays performed?With just one actor and a chorus of

people who helped him to tell the story. 5. How did “acting” eventually come about? In a competition, a man named Thespis

astounded audiences by leaping on to the back of a wooden cart and reciting poetry as if he was the characters whose lines he was reading. In doing so he became the world's first actor

6. Why was drama important to the Greeks?It was their way investigating the world

they lived in, and what it meant to be human.

Greek Actors 1. What was considered a citizen’s public duty?

 Participating in Greek drama by performing in the chorus

2. How did one become an actor?One must train in the art of public speaking

3. What were the privileges of an actor?They were respected and often exempt from military duty.

4. Why were women prohibited from acting?Greek society was male-dominated

5. How did actors dress to ensure that they were seen?They e wore long, flowing robe with a great deal of padding and high, plat-formed shoes.

6. How did their attire limit them on stage? They were not able to move around much.

7. How did the actors remedy this limitation? Limited mobility forced the actors to develop broad, sweeping gestures to signify emotions such as the beating the breast and tearing their clothes to indicate mourning and grief.

The Greek Mask1. Give the four functions of

the Greek masks:

a. Allowed them take on the role of a specific character

b. Served as a megaphonec.Identified age, sex, mood, and rank d.Allowed actors to change roles easily

Masks Worn by Actors

Structure of Greek Theatre Skene: A building

used as an area into which actors could exit the scene to change costumes and masks.

Proscenium: Acting area, or stage.

Orchestra: Where the chorus performed.

Parados: Passage on the left or right through which the chorus entered the orchestra. 

Theatron: Seating area built into a hillside in the shape of a horseshoe. 

Video Segment of Greek Drama Performance

How is Greek theater different from modern

dramatic forms such as movies and modern

theater?

Let’s Discuss the “Anticipation

Reaction Guide!

Pre-Reading Discussion Questions

1. If you defied your parents and did something wrong, what’s the worst punishment they could dole out to make sure you wouldn’t do such a thing again?

2. Should a person be judged guilty of a crime if he or she is unaware that any crime was being committed?

3. Is being self-assured ever a bad thing?4. Have you ever wanted to see a movie after having

read the book? Why would you want to spend the money if you already know the story?

Read the Myth…

Quick Question: Why did spectators in ancient Greece want to see a play in

which they were already familiar?

Answer: The entertainment came from the suspense of watching the characters

learn the truth. Also, their prior knowledge supplied the play’s dramatic

irony.

Today’s Central QuestionWhy read a 2400 year old Greek

Tragedy about a man who committed incest???

The myth of Oedipus attempts to show the consequences of human pride and rashness, of trying to outwit the gods. Oedipus’s fate—killing his father and marrying his mother—involves a taboo that operates regardless of time or place (incest) as the worst possible consequence that could befall a human attempting to place himself above the gods.

 Sophocles is not endorsing incest; he’s depicting it as the

worst thing that anyone could ever do.

Traits of Tragedy Late point of attack Violence and death occurred offstage Frequently used messengers to relate

information Stories based on myth or history, but

varied interpretations of events Focus was on psychological and ethical

attributes of characters, rather than physical and sociological.

structure of a tragedy Prologue, which describes the situation and

sets the scene Parados, an ode sung by the chorus as it

made its entrance Five dramatic scenes, or episodes--the last

of which is called the Epilogue Each episode is followed by a stasimon, a

choral ode, an exchange of laments by the chorus and the protagonist. (This ode is sometimes called a komos.)

Exodus, the climax and conclusion